Fountain pen



Feb. 3, 1959 K M. s. BAKER Original Filed Jan. 1'7, 1952 1 VENT. I

gh m wfl QM @N\ M 2,871,823 Patented Feb. 3, 1959 FOUNTAIN PEN Marlin S. Baker, Janesville, Wis., assignor to The Parker Pen Company, Janesville, Wis, a corporation of Wiscousin Original application January 17, 1952, Serial No. 266,960. Divided and this application March 15, 1956, Serial No. 572,781

3 Claims. (Cl. 120-42) The present invention relates to a pocket clip for writing instruments and to a pocket clip in combination with a writing instrument particularly designed to cooperate with such a clip. -It is an object of the invention to provide improved apparatus of this character.

The present application is a division of application Serial No; 266,960, filed January 17, 1952, and entitled Fountain Pen.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention the pocket clip is generally U-shaped such that it may be slipped over the rear end of a writing instrument with the two legs of the clip extending along opposite sides thereof. The Writing instrument is recessed to receive certain portions of the clip such that the clip may be held firmly in proper position with respect to the instrument, once it has been slipped into place, with the single exception that the clip may move resiliently outwardly to receive the lip of a pocket thereunder.

The invention is particularly applicable to a fountain pen in which the writing point is preferably maintained downwardly of the main body of the pen when not in use. An example ofsuch a pen is one operating primarily on capillary action such as that disclosed andiclaimed in application Serial No. 186,415, filed September 23, 1950, by Floyd E. Bartell, now Patent No. 2,648,309, issued- August 11, 1953, and assigned to the same'assignee as the present application. In order that such a pen may be ready for instant use it is desirable that the pen be maintained at least in a horizontal position when not in use and preferably in a position such that the writing point is lower than the main body of the pen. Accordingly the pocket clip of such a pen is arranged on the main body of the pen at the end opposite the writing point, and a removable cap is provided for covering the writing point when the pen is not in use. When the pen is to be used, the cap is removed and is preferably placed over the rear end of the pen and hence over the pocket clip. In order that the cap may slip over the pocket clip the latter is preferably arranged within a recessed portion of the barrel, as disclosed and claimed in Patent No. 2,699,147, issued January 11, 1955, to Nolan Kent .Rhoades and assigned to the same assignee as the present application. It will be apparent that thepresent invention is applicable to various forms of pens wherein it is desiredthat a cap be arranged over the pocket clip end of the pen when the pen is in use.

Accordingly it is another object of the invention to provide an improved pocket clip which may readily be snapped into proper position'with respect to a writing instrument'after which the-clipis maintained firmly in its proper position with respect thereto.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved pocketclipand writinginstrument combination in which the pocket clip may'readily be snapped" into proper position within respect to the writing instrument after which the clip is maintained firmly in its proper position with respect thereto, the writing instrument being recessed to receive certain portions of the clip.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved pocket clip and writing instrument combination in which the pocket clip may readily be snapped into' proper position with respect to the writing instrument after which the clip is maintained firmly in its proper position with respect thereto, the writing instrument being recessed to receive such a. clip whereby a cap normally covering the writing point of the instrument may he slipped over the pocket clip and the associated end of the instrument.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent upon reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a pen embodying one form of the present invention, showing a portion of the point-enclosing cap broken away, and showing in broken lines the-cap applied to the rear end of the pen barrel;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the pen of Fig. l with a portion of the cap broken away;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged scale longitudinal sectional View of the pen of Fig. 1, taken on line 3-3 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 4 is a bottom View of the rear portion of the pen.

As indicated'above, a pocket clip constructed in accordance with the present invention and constituting one feature thereof, may be slipped into position with respect to a writing instrument after which it is held firmly in proper position with respect thereto. The pocket clip is particularly adapted to, but not limited. to, application to a fountain pen of the capillary type illustrated in the drawings. in such a pen it is desirable that the writing point be directed downwardly when the pen is not in use, for example, when it is carried in the pocket. Accordingly the pocket clip is arranged at the end of the pen opposite the writing point, and a cap which covers the writing point when the pen is not in use is preferably slipped over the pocket clip and the associated end of the pen when the instrument is in use. A pocket clip constructed in accordance with the present invention, while it has other applications, is well adapted to use with such a pen, the clip lying substantially entirely within recesses in the body of the pen. In order that this particular application of the pocket clip may be understood, a general description of a fountain pen of this type is disclosed in the drawings and described hereinbelow.

The pen illustrated in the drawings includes a suitable writing nib, and an ink reservoir element contained within the barrel. A reservoir element or an extension thereof projects into the hollow tip or nib portion in contact engagement with at least a substantial portion of the inner surface of the nib portion to the end that maximum ink feeding relation be establishedbetween the reservoir element and the nib and particularly the slit of the nib- The barrel portion and nib portion together constitute an effectively integral shell-like barrel and although the nib portion may be separate from the barrel portion, nevertheless the effect of a unitary barrel is achieved.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the pen 12 includes a barrel or body/'14 and a cap 16 adapted to be fitted over either end of the pen and retained thereon by means of a friction fit between the cap and barrel. The barrel 14 is made up of a front section 18 and a rear section 20 detachably secured together by means of a threaded connecting means in the form of a tubular connecting member 22. At the forward end of the front section 18 is thetip or nib portion 24 detachably mounted in the forward end of the barrel proper.

The ink reservoir element 26 may be of capillary nature, is fitted in the front section 18 of the barrel and is provided with an extension projecting into the interior of the tip 24.

The barrel 14, made of suitable material such as plastic or metal, is of elongated formation tapered at both ends while the central portion thereof has a shape approaching the cylindrical. The taper of the barrel at both ends is long and gradual, presenting a pleasing appearance, the shape also effectively retaining the cap 16 thereon by friction when the cap is so fitted as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The rear end of the pen also is of overall tapered shape but with suitable conformations including recess 28 for accommodating the pocket clip 30 as hereinafter described more in detail.

In the more conventional fountain pens the ink is contained as a free body in a flexible or rigid chamber. The pocket clip may be arranged on the cap, with the result that the pen, when not in use and carried in the users pocket, is arranged With the writing point extending upwardly. Such an arrangement is not recommended, however, with a capillary action pen, since the ink may tend to recede from the writing point with the result that the ink will not flow immediately. In a capillary action pen it is much preferred that the clip be arranged on the end of the pen which is opposite the writing point. The cap which is provided to cover the writing point when not in use is preferably arranged over the clip end of the pen during use. It is for this reason that the clip of the illustrated pen is arranged in a recess.

The pocket clip 30 as above mentioned has a portion positioned in the recess or cutout area 28 of the barrel or pen body and inwardly of the circumferential projection of that portion of the pen, so as to enable the cap 16 to be placed over the pocket clip and entirely concealing the latter. The cap when so fitted on the pen has friction engagement with that portion of the barrel or body immediately forward of the recess, so as to be normally retained on the pen in a writing operation. The clip is of U-shape having legs 112 and 114 interconnected by a portion 116. The legs of the clip are normally spring-biased toward each other so that when the clip is fitted on the pen, the leg 112, which is disposed in the recess 28, forms a pocket engaging element. The rear end of the pen barrel or body is provided with a recess 118 on the side opposite the cutout portion 28 merging into a groove 120 leading to the rear end of the pen and terminating in a groove portion 122 (Fig. 4) on the end surface of the pen. The clip is fitted over the rear end portion of the pen, with the legs straddling the pen, to a position wherein the connecting portion 116 enters the groove 122 and the leg 114 enters the groove 120, while the leg 112 enters the recess or cutout portion 28. On the extended or free end of the leg 114 is a projection 124 which enters into the recess 118. The projection or lug 124 in the recess 118, and the leg 114 and connecting portion 116 being disposed in the respective grooves, retain the clip in position on the pen body or barrel against displacement therefrom by ordinary forces encountered in using the pen. The projection 124 prevents the clip from being withdrawn longitudinally rearwardly from the pen while the projection and the leg 114 and connecting portion 116 all cooperate with the associated elements of the pen body in restraining the clip from displacement transversely of the pen body.

It will now be seen that a pocket clip has been disclosed which is readily and firmly securable to the body of a writing instrument by simply slipping it over the end of the instrument, simple recesses being provided to receive certain portions of the clip. More specifically it has been shown that the clip may be arranged in its final position merely by sliding the clip over the end of a writing instrument and that the clip, when once properly positioned, is held firmly and securely in fixed position with respect to the instrument with the single exception that the proper portion of the clip may move resiliently outwardly thereof to receive the lip of a pocket thereunder. Furthermore, the clip is well suited to lie within recesses in the body of a pen whereby a cap, which normally covers the writing point when the pen is not in use, may he slipped over the pocket clip and the associated end of the pen body when the pen is to be used. While a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown, it will be understood, of course, that the invention is not limited thereto, since many modifications may be made, and it is therefore contemplated to cover by the appended claims any such modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

The invention having thus been described, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A writing instrument having a main body carrying a writing point at the forward end and a pocket clip at the rearward end of said body, said clip comprising a U-shape element having a pair of legs and a portion connecting the legs, the element having limited resiliency for spring biasing movement of the legs toward and from eachother, the element being fitted-on the rear end portion of the body member with the legs extending forwardly in straddling relation to the rear end portion of the body member, one of the legs constituting a pocket engaging element and the second leg having a laterally extending lug fitted in a recess in the body member, the body member having a groove in its rear end surface receiving said connecting portion and a groove in one of its side surfaces interconnecting the first said groove and said recess and receiving said second leg, the body member having a recess in the other of its side surfaces receiving substantially all portions of said clip inside the over-all exterior lines of said body.

2. A writing instrument having a main body carrying a writing point at the forward end and carrying a pocket clip at the rearward end of said body, said clip comprising a U-shaped resilient member having a pair of forwardly pointing legs and an interconnecting portion, said legs tending to draw together to a spacing less than the diameter of said rearward end of said instrument, one of said legs constituting a pocket engaging element and the other having an inwardly pointing lug at its free end, said body having an opening receiving said lug and a groove receiving said interconnecting portion, said body having a recess receiving substantially all portions of said clip inside the over-all exterior lines of said body.

3. A writing instrument having a main body portion carrying a writing point at the forward end and a pocket clip at the rearward end of said body, said clip comprising a U-shaped resilient member having a pair of forwardly pointing legs and an interconnecting portion, said legs tending to draw together to a spacing less than the diameter of said one end of said instrument, one of said legs constituting a pocket engaging element and the other having an inwardly pointing lug at its free end, said instrument having a recess receiving substantially all portions of said clip inside the overall exterior line thereof, said recess including a wide portion receiving said one leg whereby said one leg may readily receive the lip of a pocket thereunder, a narrow portion receiving snugly said other leg and at least the inner part of said interconnecting portion, and a deep portion receiving .said lug.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,720,471 Fritsch July 9, 1929 2,274,393 Alexander Feb. 24, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS 957,501 France of 1949 969,988 France of 1950 

